Purchasing advice - lowered 86
 

Hi all you experts! :)

I'm looking to buy a Triplet, and found a potential one a few hours from me. From the photos it seems to be lowered a bit - I'm looking for a year-round daily, so I'm not thrilled about that. What questions should I be asking, or what photos should I be requesting, of the dealer to figure out how it's been lowered?

Photo attached here.

https://cdn-ds.com/stock/2019-Toyota...35f26e3685.jpg

Photo is terrible, since it's angled.



Ask how it's lowered, springs only or on coilovers. And what brands.


Looks like a modest drop to me, like TRD/eibach springs which is 1 inch.

If you don't want a lowered car, don't buy a lowered car

Thanks. Here's another photo - I'll ask about the brand.

https://cdn-ds.com/stock/2019-Toyota...7d23ff424f.jpg

I'd prefer not lowered, but if it's done with street-minded parts and it's just a 1" drop, should daily ride quality should be fairly similar? Or still not a good idea (especially in some snow).

Depends on the springs and other modifications. Honestly if it's just eibach pro/trd springs, or even RCE yellows it'll ride just fine and you shouldn't have an issue; ride quality should be very similar.
What concerns me with lowered cars is-
Have they bottomed out on anything?
Did they swap out coilovers before trading it in?
Did they get an alignment?
Is everything completely tight and sound?

It's possible to search by VIN to see if the car was outfitted from factory with the TRD springs. If so, you have less worries

Thanks, that's super helpful. The car only has 6K miles, so I don't think there's really a worry about abuse if the ride is fine.

I'll do my homework - thanks for your help!

Found the info - Toyota VIN decoder says that it has "S2 TRD LOWERING SPRINGS" installed at Port.

This should be similar enough to a stock ride that I should be fine with it as a daily?

Test drive it. It's the only way you'll know how it handles.
If you don't like it find another.

theres no real reason to not be lowered. many people drive year round in the new england area dropped 1in. if anything, it just saves you having to buy and install lowering springs yourself. im lowered an inch or inch and a half and snow tires fit fine. the snows i run are 205/50/17. thats the gold standard size for a winter wheel, some even run 16in but its not like itll be any better or worse dailying a car dropped one inch. if anything itll be better.

people act like doing anything to the car will ruin its daily ability. hell, im on 9k/8k springs and everyone will tell you it'll be terrible to daily. reality is its hardly a perceivable difference in ride comfort. granted they are decently expensive. the car isnt going to ride like a tahoe at the end of the day, stock or modified.

id think that its a nice little bonus that ur cars lowered already

If you haven't already driven a new bone-stock FRS/BRZ/86 then you should do that first. Otherwise you'll have no benchmark to judge ride quality, handling, noises, etc. Be sure to test-drive a car with the same gearbox option you'll ultimately want.

You'll be fine.

- Andrew

To add to that, mine has been lowered for most of it's life (this is the 8th winter with it) and no issues in winter here in the Toronto Canada area.


Don't try to drive through 12" of loose snow and you'll be fine :D

Glad to know it can still get through snow lowered a little! Thanks for all your responses. I've driven a stock 2017 and felt it was fine for me but definitely on the edge of how rough I'd like (roads here can be pretty bad). I'll see if I can find one a little closer that's lowered a bit to test drive before driving the few hours to this one.

It's not like it's dragging frame everywhere. But I'm one of the rarities around here that is extremely happy at stock height. Just enough to clear most parking curbs front and rear. I already need to back up my driveway because the front overhang kisses the gutter if i pull straight in. 1" lower would be a lot of damage and worry for something that's unnecessary to me.

Should be fine, a bit harsher on big bumps than stock. Really depends on the roads around you.

Unfortunately I have (lifted) stock suspension on my car right now because I rallycross, otherwise I'd take you for a ride on quality coilovers that I usually have on my car. There can be a big difference between a 1 inch drop with different brands or when lowering with springs vs coilovers, and between coilover brands.

I talk about it every year, but we really need to have a BRZ meet up that's just people giving people rides on different suspension set ups.

- Andrew

Andrew, are the Racecomp Tarmac zero coils good for a daily lowered 1 inch? How would the ride quality be compared to a 2017 pp with the RCE lowering springs that I am currently on? Would you suggest the upgrade? I'm on gripper tires than stock and have a little camber front and back.

This^
I have 180,000 miles on a 1.5" drop. I have driven or rode in many other various setups. For street driving there is no huge difference between any set ups I have been exposed to. Track use may be a different matter but I can not speak to that.
The only thing I have had to learn to watch out for is high speed bumps and sloped driveways. I have bounced the bumper or exhaust off many a surface because I went just a little too fast. I may learn to slow down someday but probably not.


Never had an issue with loose snow of any depth (my record is 18") but 4 inches of heavy, wet, slushy stuff get's a tad dicey. The worst is the slushy stuff between wheel ruts that then freezes solid. Get 4 or 5 inches of that and I either have to go around or bare the horrid sound of scrapping as I drag the car over it.

They're good, but our RCE SS1 coilovers ride better. It's a good step up from just the springs.

- Andrew

one of the few things I miss is the nice flat everything. In NC the crowns of the roads can be so high I actually scraped on them when I was stock, and the rain gutters are so gigantic my sister scraped her Chrysler Pacifica on her own driveway.

Only problem I had with my lowered Yaris was quick service oil places. I had to get out and let a stick figure person drive in so the car was high enough to get over the metal.

Update - I heard back from the seller, he sent me the attached photos. Am I looking at just the TRD lowering springs here? (Those were specified in the VIN lookup as having been installed by the dealer.) He also measured for me from the center of the hubcap to the top of the wheel well, and says it's about 13.5" - from the info in this thread it seems stock is about 14.5".

If this info is all accurate, and if anyone here can confirm from photos that it's just the TRD lowering springs, then I know what I need to find locally and go for a test drive in.

Thanks again for your help - I love this community!

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bit late on this one OP but the TRD springs will be fine. I ran stock springs for a while and then installed the TRD lowering springs. The TRD springs don't alter the ride quality that I could tell but are a bit rougher over large bumps and potholes. i installed the TRD sway bars as well and my car sits a lot flatter in corners than stock which is what I wanted. I don't know how much of this is sway bars and how much is springs. I wouldn't hesitate to buy a car with the TRD springs - it's a very good upgrade over stock for a street car.

My car has MCA Street Performance coilovers, dropped 20mm, they out perform the PP Sachs suspension in every way.

I found the standard springs and dampers very "crashy" on any surface that wasn't dead smooth.

I've been in a few twins with lowering springs and though they compromised comfort and handling for "the lowered look".

IMO the OEM dampers only just have enough travel with standard height springs, a higher rate spring of an aftermarket coil helps a bit with limiting the lenght of the stroke, but, the higher rate spring isn't well matched to the OEM damper, valving wise, I believe......yeah

But them I'm not a suspension expert and can only give feedback on what I "feel".

I am old and ocer opinionated though, so there is that.